Friday, October 23, 2009

Good Times

I know I have wittered on about Origin, but what I have not done is show you pictures. So here you are. It was a typical carreducker confection on a sought after corner stand. We tried to emphasize the craft side of what we do, hence the tools and shoes hung on the wall. I think it worked well and we got lots of positive feedback.

Next come the people. The Other One and me, doing our thing. Look at those Winkers winking! They are so cool.

Look at the crush of visitors. One great thing about Origin is the constantly high visitor numbers. There were no lulls.

Finally look at Mama Ducker in the Dietrich. Gorgeous! And the shoes look lovely too. It's funny how things turn out. Of the 3 women's bespoke samples we made, this was the least favourite on paper, but once the alchemy of making had been done, they reversed that position. They are so elegant and very flattering.

On Wednesday, we went for a coffee with Nathan Brown from Lodger. Great concept, beautiful shop and a lovely guy. Always good to meet other shoe people and see how they get to where they are. Good on you Nathan for supporting the British shoe industry with such conviction. We chewed the cud and put the industry to rights. Very interesting.

We have been invited to participate in a year long programme for up and coming luxury brands designed to stimulate both our entrepneurial skills and promote the craft element of luxury. It's called Crafted, and, funded by the American Express Foundation, it is run by Walpole and Arts and Business.Yesterday we had our first meeting with our new business mentor, Mark Henderson (Gieves and Hawkes). This guy knows the industry backwards; is amazingly well connected; and will be a fantastic asset to us. We talked about our product offering, from bespoke shoes to the Winkers, and planned our year working together. We are very excited about this. Will keep you posted on how it develops. Good times!